Eventers “Practice Perfection” with Nelson Pessoa at Lier CSI2*
The wrath of the Belgium weather with its strong winds and torrential rain couldn’t stop our eventers as they spent the week training with jumping legend, and Australian High Performance jumping coach, Nelson Pessoa in Brussels.
UK based High Performance Gold Squad riders Andrew Hoy and Chris Burton spent a week with Pessoa focusing on a variety of exercises designed to prepare both horse and rider for the pressures of competition. This included focusing on the flexibility and adjustability of the horses, and ensuring that riders understand the mechanics of their equine partners – like a Formula 1 racecar everything should be precisely tuned. 
To put what the riders had learnt into practice Hoy and Burton competed at Lier CSI2* under the watchful eye of Pessoa. The object of the competition for the riders was to focus on producing clear rounds, and to cope with the added pressure of a show environment.
“Nothing replaces the experience of a competition. Nothing. The competition is the only place where you have the pressure of performance combined with elements that are out of your control (draw list, timings, weather, etc). It is the place where you want perfection and if you want perfection, you must practice perfection. The difference between winning and losing can be as little as 5cm. So this is what we are trying to achieve this week in training, and then at the CSI Lier show” said Pessoa.
Both Hoy and Burton took a variety of horses to Lier to maximize the experience and gain exposure at a large indoor show, an environment not commonly experienced in eventing.
Hoy had five horses in attendance including his fourth place WEG ride, Vassily de Lassos. Vassily de Lassos and Hoy put in an impressive round jumping clean in the 1.35m to finish in 26th place. Hoy also competed ByeBye Brisquenouille in the 1.20m to produce a double clear finishing in 18th place. His other mounts Bloom Des Hauts Crets finished 11th in the 1.10m, while the coloured Irish Sport Horse Hasenacher Jack Sparrow placed 13th in the same class.
“The week of training with Nelson Pessoa followed by the CSI show in Lier has been invaluable preparation for the season. Nelson is an incredible horseman and coach with a holistic approach, treating every horse as an individual, always positive and brings out the best in a horse's ability. I am very much looking forward to being back soon!” said Hoy.
Following the recent relocation of his stables Burton used the week of training to focus on his horses for the upcoming season, improving his performance with his existing rides and also introducing a new addition to the team.
Burton rode Graf Liberty, who will be heading to Badminton in May, in the 1.30m where he placed 16th just behind his other ride Caliber Royale who finished 8th. Burton also stepped out with the newest addition to his team, Lawtown Chloe, putting in a stellar performance to finish 2nd in the 1.25m Grand Prix with two clear rounds.
“We just had our second baby, Jack, and I recently moved my stables so I’ve had a few things going on. However, it’s good to concentrate on my horses and get myself set up for the season ahead. The competition experience is excellent and gives me a chance to focus on fine-tuning my skills and asking a bit more from my horses” said Burton.
Australian coach Sam Lyle was also in attendance for the duration of the training at Pessoa’s and the competition in Lier to learn from Pessoa before returning to Australia.
“It was a great experience to learn from Nelson this week. His depth of knowledge is impressive. It was also helpful to observe our elite riders in action and learn from them. The show in Lier was a terrific competition environment, and really great to have an indoor considering the weather!
It’s interesting to watch our riders in competition and hear the feedback from Nelson on how to improve their showjumping rounds. I have plenty of things to bring home to implement in the program in Australia” said Lyle.
Currently our Australian based riders are preparing for the upcoming Oceania Championships to be held in Taupo, New Zealand in May where Pessoa will be in attendance. Pessoa will also be in Australia ahead of the competition to coach the riders at camp prior to departing for New Zealand.
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